What my brothers must pay most attention to is to Muslims’ attaching importance to their own minds. A person will take advice from older people, but what really matters is his own mind. Because we will be held to account from our own minds. They will ask us about us, about what we did. That is why in analyzing something the logic of “my spiritual guide will tell me” is incorrect. One cannot refuse to see a blatant and evident fact by saying "If the antichrist (dajjal) exists my spiritual guide will tell me, and if Hazrat Mahdi (as) exists he will tell me that.” Our Prophet (saas) tells us that. The Qur’an tells us. We are in a world of testing. Nobody knows who will go to paradise or hell. His teacher may go to paradise, he will go to hell, or he may himself go to paradise while his teacher goes to hell. So that kind of bond is no salvation at all. That is why the logic of “If Hazrat Mahdi (as) has appeared my teacher will tell me” is unacceptable. In that case, why did our Prophet (saas) describe all the portents of the End Times? We must look to the Qur’an and the hadiths. Allah tells us to ask those who know, and that there is a difference between those who know and those who do not.

Your teacher may be unaware while you are aware. But if someone does not want to understand, he will not understand even if his teacher tells him. Not even if his teacher points it out. The guide can only explain to a certain extent. He cannot say, “Such and such a person is the Mahdi.” That would contravene Islam and the hadith and would be to fall into denial. He cannot say “that specific community.” He can only make indications. But if the man does not use his intelligence, he will never see, no matter how much the teacher indicates it. It is wrong to expect literal information from spiritual guides. Bediüzzaman says “This world is a field of test, the door to reason would be opened but the free will of mind would not be taken away.” Bediuzzaman does not say "you will recognize him en masse.” He says, “you will recognize him individually.” That is why one cannot say my community and my friends did not recognize him, so I did not either. The antichrist will also be recognized through the light of faith.

If the antichrist has appeared, so has Hazrat Mahdi (as). If we have the antichrist, then the opposite force, Hazrat Mahdi (as), is absolutely certainly at work. What will those who follow Hazrat Mahdi (as) do? They will strive against the antichrist. For example, I did not see Hazrat Mahdi (as) in person, but I am striving against the antichrist with all my might. The important thing is Islamic Union and to help Hazrat Mahdi (as). Allah will show us that holy one once we have assisted the movement of the Mahdi and become followers of it. There is no conception of "my sheikh or spiritual teacher would tell me if the antichrist has appeared” in Islam. They say, “I myself do not know the antichrist, but my sheikh will tell me.” So their spiritual teacher may as well feed them their dinner, as well. Spiritual guides only give general pointers. That is their method. If he says, “Muslims are in a terrible state, in a terrible predicament,” then that means that the movement of the antichrist has appeared. If he says, "Allah will soon bestow salvation”, then that means that Hazrat Mahdi (as) will soon appear. But there will be nothing openly told. He cannot say, “this or that person is the antichrist, this or that person is the Mahdi.” Since they cannot speak openly, one cannot say, “since my teacher has not told me, the antichrist has not yet appeared, Hazrat Mahdi (as) has not yet appeared.” You may as well just eat, drink and sleep. That is obviously out of the question. These are excuses for those with sickness in their hearts, hypocrisy in their hearts, weakness in their minds, in order to be able to live their earthly lives.

You will see him if you are not blind. If you cannot see him, then Allah is not showing you. It means you have no light of faith. But it is illuminated as far as you can see. There is no immediate need for you to see him in person; if you hear his words and see his activities, then you will understand. I hear his voice and witness his actions, and I am his follower. It is no problem for me never to have seen his flesh and bones. It is fine once one has seen his work, heard his voice and detected his scent, insha’Allah. There are many devilish spiritual teachers who pacify our brothers. So-called teachers who distract people with stalling politics. It is meaningless not to see even though it has all been illuminated and signposted. Our Prophet (saas) has given signs. Are they blind? If you are blind, is the dajjal blind as well? In the same way that the antichrist’s seeing does not surprise us, neither does your inability to see. The antichrist also has his followers.

Those who fail to see out of ignorance are the exception, and I apologize to them. But it is meaningless not to see when it is all illuminated and signposted. The Euphrates has been stopped for the first time in history. There have been lunar and solar eclipses in Ramadan. There was the Iran-Iraq War and Afghanistan and Iraq have been invaded. But people still say they cannot see. If you cannot see, neither can the antichrist. Allah produces a double-headed comet, two bright stars, but people say they never saw them. If you can’t see them, we will show you. But they still say they cannot see anything. In that case, one must have lost an eye. You can identify their concerns very well. When the subject of the movement of the Mahdi comes up, they say, “my teacher will tell me.”

Of course one must follow rational genuine spiritual teachers. There are few genuine spiritual teachers in the world. Few scholars remaining is one of the signs of the antichrist. Just ignorant types remain. People following their own earthly desires. There are some good people, but very few. This is a feature of the age of the Mahdi. We can identify the movement of the Mahdi from that, from the lack of true spiritual guides.

It is also wrong to aggrandize such types and portray them as real scholars by playing to their arrogance. The more you help these people who indirectly serve the movement of the antichrist grow, the more you are strengthening the antichrist. At the very least, these types should remain silent. They need to be directed with kindness. One must ask them, “is this hadith untrue, is this sign untrue?” They cannot say they are untrue, as they have already happened. That is why they have been given the job of putting people to sleep, these spiritual guides who act like narcotics are spreading the drugs of the movement of the dajjal. They serve to numb the minds of and hypnotize Muslims. They are satan’s army. But people are unaware of this going on. People do not knowingly line up with the dajjal. This is how they actually end up following him. They are following him out of ignorance and heedlessness. Without being aware of the dajjal. One does not feel that the dajjal is a person. The hadiths say that “seventy thousand Muslims with turbans will follow the shaven-headed dajjal.” Would anyone knowingly do that? In the Hereafter, these people say, “we never ascribed equals to Allah.” Well, they do, but they do not realize it.

There is no need to think much to see whether there are any signs. These things are known. You know the existence and oneness of Allah in your own conscience. Having fear of Allah is the work of your conscience. What is the spiritual teacher to do? He suggests and points, but only to those who understand. They must not expect specific identification. Nothing literal. There is no such style in the religion. To do such a thing would be to fall into disbelief. You cannot say "I will hold onto my teacher’s robe and he will carry me to paradise.” The angels will drag you away from that robe and send you to hell, may Allah forbid.

Kaçkar TV, 3 December 2010

The right thing is for someone who believes in the Qur’an and the hadith to be full of love. That is the kind of person that comes to mind when a Muslim is mentioned. But people are very different. They talk about the religion and faith and then say, “I have had a revelation.” Unbelievable lunacy. He talks about the Qur’an and then speaks utter nonsense. This is terrifying. Hatred and blood and pus constantly pour from their mouths; hatred of women, Bektashis, Alawites, Shiites and Jaferis. Say something that will please Allah instead. Talk of the signs leading to faith, the miracles of the Qur’an. Talk about love and peace and brotherhood. Bring peace to people’s minds. People regard such types as Muslims with real fear of Allah. The more they speak of enmity and use extreme language, the more fear of Allah they imagine they possess. Psychopaths like that should be left alone. Islam means the joy of paradise, and if that is lacking, it means the movement of the antichrist is there instead. If one is not filled with peace and joy when listening to someone, then there is something satanic in him. The criterion is this; if it warms your heart to look at him. Internal peace is so important. If something about that person troubles one, then there is something wrong. If there is an irregularity in his facial expression, that is also a significant sign. They must not underestimate this; it is very important.

One must fear nothing but Allah. I am someone with fear of Allah. I also like Sheikh Nazım al-Qubrusi al-Haqqani very much, and if anyone speaks against him, I am personally offended and will not let it rest. What happens when one has no fear of Allah? One is unconcerned. It kills love. Love needs patience. If you have no love of Allah you ruin what you love. The reason why one does not abandon what one loves is fear of Allah. You feel for them. May Allah forbid, someone you love suffers a burned face and hands. You protect and watch over him. It is difficult, but you have patience. Fear of Allah creates love in a person. It is the root of love, of passion. Someone who does not know pain cannot know love. Fear of Allah bestows fortitude, otherwise people would never have fortitude. Someone you love acts badly, and again, and again, so you abandon them and forget them. But not if you have fear of Allah. You have patience and do not abandon them, knowing that Allah will hold you to account. That is why Muslims know love and passion very well. Look at songs – all loves come to an end. All loves end in tears, one song says. What they call love always ends in separation and pain. In Islam, love means being together forever. Because one is with a manifestation of Allah forever, and dies with him. You are together again in the hereafter. But if there is no fear of Allah in doing this, then one may take revenge on someone who wrongs us in a manner incompatible with the Qur’an, may Allah forbid. We may seek revenge without following the Qur’an, and by Allah’s will we may actually succeed. But the Qur’an forbids that. Allah forbids illegal vengeance. Fear of Allah opens the door of love. Because you cannot be friends with someone who takes evil revenge. But the Qur’an allows us to live in harmony. We thus have a way back. If we are angry with someone, we always have a way back, for example. That is how it is in Islam. You have animosity with someone, animosity for the sake of Allah and warn them out of fear of Allah. He puts matters right and your friendship continues, as if it had never been interrupted. Bonds may weaken in Islam, but they never break, so long as one is a Muslim. You pray with a fear of Allah. Otherwise you would not pray. You would say you love Him and not pray. One might say one loves Allah but enjoy illicit earnings. One might take bribes, but not if one fears Allah. This ensures propriety right through society. The bonds between people are thus perfected. Why should I be preaching at this time if I had no fear of Allah? I would say I love Allah and go off to bed. I would even say, “sleep makes one strong.” Or I could go to the cinema with my friends and say that would raise my level of culture. I could lay a lovely table, enjoy the fruit and give thanks to Allah and tell people to read books over the internet. When would one say that? May Allah forbid, when one has no fear of Allah. When one is not sincere. One has to be honest in fear of Allah. You say something to someone, for example, but it sounds rude, so why bother to put it right? Out of fear of Allah. Because you feel sorry that the other person will be offended. And Allah will hold you to account. The balance just has to be restored, so you find other, better words. Why? Out of fear of Allah. Fear of Allah is the root of love and passion. They say that all loves end in tears and separation. Would anyone who fears Allah abandon his beloved? Why should he? People only leave because they have no fear. Fear of Allah gives rise to a deep feeling of affection and protectiveness. They try to maintain their marriages with lust. But lust disappears in a few minutes on the first night. Then they say, “what have I done? I acted in haste.” You have acted like an animal because you have no fear of Allah. When the curtain of lust before your eyes is lifted you see the other person as just flesh and bone, as an entity that has developed through evolution. Then they depart, saying that all loves end in separation. There is no real love anywhere in that. So do not speak the word love. Love is based on love of Allah. You love Allah with an endless love. Because Allah is infinite Might and Beauty. You ask Allah to love forever. And you love as much as Allah bestows. You love with no bounds, for Allah’s approval, as a manifestation of Allah. That is called fear of Allah. Fear of Allah means not to circumscribe Him. Otherwise, may Allah forbid, a Muslim would still burn with love of Allah even if he went to hell. But no genuine Muslim will go to hell. Allah is infinitely just, and wise, and compassionate. It is Allah Who teaches us compassion. It is Allah Who gives feelings of pity. It is Allah Who enables us to think rationally. People who try to second guess Allah with the mind bestowed by him make themselves ridiculous. Because one can only think as much as the knowledge bestowed by Him allows, no more and no less. Just to that level.

Muslims cannot remain without a leader. The Prophet Joseph (as) takes over, and abundance follows. Dhu’lQarnayn (as) assumes the leadership and abundance follows. The Prophet Solomon (as) assumes the leadership and abundance follows. They offer to help Dhu’lQarnayn (as) and he tells them to help him with human strength alone. When there is no leader, no high quality and effective human society can work. So there can be no success against Gog and Magog, against anarchy and terror. One needs people in lead whom Allah will inspire. Even if there are talented people, there can be no success without a leader. Help me with people, he [Dhu’lQarnayn (as)]says. A head comes to control the body, and the body then comes to life. A body without a head is dead. It may move, but it is in a vegetative state. The Muslim world is currently in a vegetative state. It is crippled and paralyzed. But if it had a leader, it would be restored.